22nd Oct 2018

Freedom to Experiment – All You Need is LSD comes to the Belgrade Theatre

Wild, surreal fantasy meets real-life stories and serious scientific research in Leo Butler’s critically acclaimed new play All You Need Is LSD.

After opening to rave reviews at the Birmingham REP, this “eye-opening” production heads to the Belgrade Theatre this November, exploring themes of freedom, politics, life and death in a “fast, furious and very often, funny” dissection of the UK’s ongoing drugs debate.

In a marked departure from his signature gritty realism, Butler has teamed up with renowned theatre company Told By An Idiot, who bring their “anarchic style of insane sanity” to bear on his uncharacteristically off-the-wall script, resulting in a kind of “contained chaos”.

Drawing on his own experience as a guinea pig in the world’s first LSD drug trials since the 1960s, Butler invites audiences to join him for a trip (in more than one sense) through the colourful history of the drug, from its accidental invention by Professor Albert Hofmann in 1943, through its medical, recreational and even intelligence-gathering applications in the 50s and 60s, to its eventual criminalisation in 1968.

Fictional characters from Doctor Who and Alice in Wonderland collide with historical figures ranging from The Beatles to Ronald Regan in this weird and wonderful tumble down the psychedelic rabbit hole, exploring how and why attitudes towards drugs in the US and UK have changed and developed over the years.

Though it might not be a straightforward story, it’s certainly an enlightening one. In the words of one reviewer, “Enter with an open mind and who knows, maybe it will be expanded further.”

All You Need Is LSD comes to the Belgrade Theatre Coventry 15-17 November. Tickets are available to book now by calling the box office on 024 7655 3055 or visiting www.belgrade.co.uk.